TURKEY – Today is 2nd of July 2013, the 20th anniversary of Madimak Massacre. It remarks a dark day in Turkish Republic’s history. 20 years ago today 37 people were burned to death by fundamentalist Islamist in downtown Sivas. Those who died were mostly Alevi poets, writers, musicians, artists, intellectuals. Two hotel employees were also killed in the fires. They were there for an annual cultural festival, a celebration of 16th century Alevi poet Pir Sultan Abdal.

On 2nd of July 1993, after Friday prayer a large number of Salafists gathered in front of the hotel named Otel Madımak. They were enraged by the presence of world renowned writer and intellect Aziz Nesin. Nesin was an atheist. He had translated and published extracts from Salman Rushdie’s The Satanic Verses and was celebrating Pir Sultan Abdal’s legacy with Alevis. CONTINUE READING